Women Entrepreneurs, SMEs Keeping Nigeria’s Economy Alive — Presidency

The Presidency has described women entrepreneurs and small businesses as the “lifeblood of Nigeria’s economy,” affirming that they remain central to the country’s post-reform recovery and inclusive growth agenda.

Speaking at the 5th Women Enterprise Alliance (WenA) Conference in Abuja, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Entrepreneurship Development and Innovation in the Digital Economy, Ms Chayla Shagaya, said women-owned enterprises were sustaining millions of livelihoods despite harsh business environments.

According to her, under President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, the Federal Government is intensifying reforms to strengthen the ecosystem for women-led enterprises — from access to finance and tax harmonisation to digital financing and power initiatives.

“Across Nigeria, women entrepreneurs are the quiet economists of every household — innovating, employing, and solving local problems with global relevance. About 70 per cent of submissions on SME reforms came from women,” Shagaya said.

She disclosed that her office recently hosted a digital feedback call that attracted over 100,000 submissions, most from women business owners, reflecting the growing appetite for inclusion in government policy design.

Shagaya also hinted at new partnerships between the Bank of Industry and other financial institutions aimed at expanding affordable credit access for female entrepreneurs.

“You no longer need to bring your grandmother’s land title to secure a loan,” she added with a smile, drawing laughter from the audience.

She assured that the Tinubu administration is committed to building “policies that reach people where they are — especially women at the heart of Nigeria’s enterprise sector.”

Founder of the Women Enterprise Alliance, Mrs Aisha Babangida, urged policymakers to move beyond “policy talk” to actionable support for women-led businesses, lamenting persistent barriers to information, credit, and markets.

“When I founded WenA, I thought passion was enough. But it wasn’t. The paperwork, the tax codes, the licensing rules — these were heavy even for those of us with networks. Imagine what it’s like for a woman starting a micro-business in a rural town,” she said.

Babangida praised UN Women Nigeria’s Affirmative Action Procurement Reform in Kaduna State, which has introduced female representation on procurement boards and waived registration fees for women-led enterprises.

“Inclusive procurement is not a concession to women; it is an economic strategy,” she stressed.

She also announced WenA’s upcoming National Certification Programme, designed to help women entrepreneurs qualify for public contracts through improved documentation and compliance training.

“Our goal is not to highlight problems but to unlock solutions — to move from exclusion to empowerment,” Babangida stated.

In a related session, Ms Aisha Bendo-Alkali of UN Women Nigeria called for policy attention to unpaid care work, describing it as a “hidden tax” that restricts women’s productivity.

Supported by the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi), the UN Women programme advocates the integration of women’s economic empowerment into national development plans.

“Reducing the burden of unpaid care is not just a gender issue — it’s an economic imperative,” she said.

Also speaking, the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Dr Zacch Adedeji, announced fresh fiscal measures to ease tax pressures on small businesses.

Represented by Mr Olufemi Olarinde, Adedeji revealed that beginning January 2026, businesses with annual turnovers of ₦100 million or less will be exempted from corporate income tax.

“Taxation should support the formalisation and growth of small businesses — not stifle them,” he said.

He added that FIRS is introducing a Unified Tax Identification Number (UTIN) integrated across CAC, FIRS, and other regulatory agencies to simplify compliance and eliminate multiple registration processes.

The two-day conference, themed “Policy Reforms and Resilience Strategies for Small and Medium Enterprises in a New Economy,” drew participants from government, financial institutions, development partners, and the private sector.

In her closing remarks, Aisha Babangida noted that real reforms must be measured not by press statements but by impact.

“A real reform is when a woman in Kaduna, Aba, or Makurdi can register her business in minutes, access capital without fear, and supply to the government without bias,” she said.

The event, supported by FIRS, FCMB, and UN Women, ended with a collective pledge to promote a gender-inclusive economy.

“Empowering women entrepreneurs is not charity,” Shagaya concluded. “It is a national strategy — and the surest path to a resilient Nigerian economy.”